Hey Pyromania,
I didn't get to choose to go for the MPL or CPL program. I found out my IT is for the MPL program. So they choose for me.
The recruitment schedule that they have for overseas applicants takes about a month. One step each week (roughly)
Initial Test
First Interview
ICAO English Assessment
OAA Skills Assessment
Second Interview
For the MPL, yeah you can't take command with just that. I saw that KA does say Cadets will be able to take command after some years. So that implies that an ATPL will be issued by HKCAD when you are able to take command?